Illuminated
by stAnd out - SHOUT OUT
Summary: Set before and during First Class. Parallel-to have the same direction, nature or tendency; corresponding; similar. She was his solid ground in the harshness of the word, holding him up as the pressures of reality tried to knock him down. Charles/OC
1. Prologue

**Illuminated**

**Prologue**

Jessica-Lee Sharp slept soundlessly on the makeshift bed, her long light brown hair in her face ad fanned out along the pillow in a mess of brown strands. The thin sheets of the bed were pulled up to her chin and tucked tightly around the rest of her form to try and keep her warm. A small blue hand moved over to her forehead, feeling the fever that was beginning to burn at her.

"I'll get you better, Jess, I promise."

A young blue skinned girl looked at the older female, her heart breaking at the sight of her in such a state. Her skin was ghastly white and sweat slicked her body from head to toe. The sheets did nothing to keep her warm and they didn't have anything else to try and assist her more. Raven fought back tears of panic as she changed into the form of the sick girl when she was healthy and brushed the brown hair from her face. She needed to get her medicine and food.

Slipping from the small place that they had claimed to sleep in for the night, Raven darted along the streets in her best friends form, looking around for a place that she could get what she needed. The homes were scattered far apart outside of New York and she had to travel further to try and find a place.

"_I always loved the country," Jessica said as she looked around with tired eyes, her face pale. She had a smile on her face none the less, leaning against one of the road signs that were littered along the roadways._

"_There's not much to do out here."_

"_True, but we don't have to hide out here, either," She explained, looking down toward the younger girl. Raven smiled back softly, concern in her eyes as she watched Jessica slump against the sign. "No one here to judge us or run us off, just the open air and life."_

Coming to a long driveway that led to a castle like home, Raven glared up at it in determination. She was going to keep Jessica safe, just as she had done for her for so many years. Running up the drive quickly but quietly, she looked around for an opening. An open first story window allowed her entrance and she quickly slipped inside, snooping out a kitchen.

She couldn't stop herself from admiring the beautiful home, mostly because she had never been in such a fancy place before. She had been on the run for years and before that she had been just a poor child of war. Stopping at a large grandfather clock, she took a moment to marvel the large structure of it before she realized that Jessica was still sick back at the small hideout they had been staying in.

Once she had found the kitchen she paused in the doorway, looking around at everything. A refrigerator caught her attention and she quickly darted over to it, pulling it open to look at what was inside. The creek of floorboards caused her heart to nearly stop and her stomach to tighten in fear of getting caught. Looking around for a place to hide, she caught sight of a photograph on the wall and quickly morphed into the women in the photo, standing at the fridge in a red dress and pearls, her hair to her shoulders and blond.

"Mother!"

The young voice of a boy caused her to look away from the fridge, toward the British accented child. He was dressed in blue pyjamas and was holding a baseball bat, clearly ready for whatever threat could come his way. Raven tried to keep herself calm, years of acting as other people giving her experience.

"What are you-I thought you were a burglar," he said as he walked further into the kitchen, lowering the bat. Raven offered a small smile to him, just wanting to act that part and get what she needed so she could leave.

"I didn't mean to scare you, darling, I was just getting a snack. Go back to bed." When the boy didn't move, Raven found herself beginning to panic. "What the matter?" She could only have hoped her accent wasn't what was throwing him off, she hadn't exactly practiced it. "Go on, back to bed." Offering another smile, she bent at the waist so she was eye level with him. "I'll make you a hot chocolate," She tried to bribe with a smile.

"Who are you?" The boy asked suddenly, wiping the smile off of the morph's face. She watched as he looked up toward the same photo that she had seen, his face drawing to a frown. She knew that she had been caught, but she didn't know what to do. This hadn't ever happened before. "And what have you done with my mother!"

"_My mother has never set foot in this kitchen in her life, and she's certainly never made me a hot chocolate,"_ The sound of the boys voice echoing through her head made her heart to begin to race inside her chest, her hands moving to clutch at her head. What was happening? What was he?

Giving up the façade, she let her body relax back into her own form. Her red hair slicked back with markings raised along her blue skin. She expected him to scream, to run away or throw things at her, but he didn't. He didn't even glare. He smiled.

"You're not…s-scared of me?" She asked hesitantly, looking at the boy in surprise.

"I always believed I couldn't be the only one in the world. The only person who was different," The boy said in a calm voice, all hostility that he had been showing to her only a moment before completely disappeared. "Charles Xavier," He introduced, holding out a hand for her to shake. She only hesitated a moment before she took his hand she shook it carefully.

"Raven," She said quietly.

"You're hungry," Charles exclaimed suddenly as he moved away, toward the fridge. It was then that Raven remembered why she had come into the home in the first place.

"I'm not alone," She said suddenly, "My friend…she's sick and…she's like us as well." Charles seemed shocked at the mention of yet another special person, but concern was in his eyes when she said that she was sick. "I have to get back to her; I can't leave her alone too long."

"I'll go with you," He said quickly. "You said that she's sick. I can help you to bring her here. You both can stay here as long as you like. You won't have to steal ever again," Charles said in an excited voice. Raven smiled happily at the thought, knowing that he was true to his word and only wanted to help her and Jessica. Raven felt awkward as she waited outside of the home for Charles, who had run up to his bedroom so he could get changed out of his pyjamas.

"Are you ready to leave?" Charles asked as he appeared again, closing the large front door behind him. Raven nodded her head and moved ahead to lead the way.

"What can your friend do?" Charles asked excitedly as they made their way down the long driveway at an even pace, the dim light of sunrise barely lighting their way. Raven looked around awkwardly, not knowing it she should answer him or not.

"I don't really know," Raven admitted. "I never wanted to ask her because she always cried when her mutation was brought up." Charles nodded his head in understanding, his mood deflating a bit. Raven didn't know exactly how Jessica would react when she woke up, but she was fairly certain that she would be happy about having someone else that had a gift around.

"I'm a telepath," Charles said suddenly, looking over to Raven with a smile on his face again. "I can speak to people through their mind and I can also go inside of people's minds." Raven tensed at the thought of such a thing happening, an invasion of privacy like no other. Charles must have seen her tense because he was quick to add, "But I would never do that without your permission!"

"Thank you," Raven mumbled, offering him as smile in return.

They were soon far away from the house, reaching an abandoned cabin on another property. Raven stepped inside first, seeing that Jessica had rolled over in her sleep and curled up to try and warm herself. Her back was toward them, only a bundle of sheets and brown hair visible. "This is where you've been staying?" Charles asked quietly, looking around.

"Yes, Jessica couldn't move anymore so this was the closest place we could find."

Moving forward to kneel beside the trembling form, Raven pulled the blankets down slightly until her face was exposed. Charles kept his distance from the friends, waiting for Raven's consent to approach. He took a moment to look around the space, not seeing any type of personal affects or food anywhere. The cabin itself was full of holes and unsafe to live in.

"Jess," Raven whispered quietly, gently shaking the sickly girls shoulder. She became worried at the sight of blue veins appearing around her friends eyes, having seen them before and knowing that they were never a good sign. "Jessica, please, wake up. I brought help," she begged quietly, shaking her friends shoulder more desperately.

"I could carry her back home and she could be treated there," Charles proposed. "It's warm there, and there's food and water."

Raven paused, looking over her shoulder before her yellow eyes fell back down to her friend. "She has to stay wrapped in the sheet," she said back, "It's her mutation. You can't touch her skin."

"I won't, I promise."

Walking forward to where Raven was still kneeling down, Charles was surprised at the pale complexion of the other girl, the blue veins standing out along her skin even more. Her hair was messed and lying all around her face, the strands of brown leaving lines along her skin. She looked thin for her age, probably a bit older than Raven was.

Before he could think about what he was doing his hand was reaching out to touch the strange raised veins around her eyes, before Raven quickly caught his wrist, drawing him back to reality. "What are you doing? I said you can't touch her!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize what I was doing," Charles apologized quickly, taking his hand back. He couldn't stop himself from feeling so curious about the blue abnormality around the girls eyes. Was it a part of her mutation? Was it a part of her sickness?

**Ɏ**

Raven sat on the double bed that Charles had given to Jessica, her own bedroom just next door. Jessica slept on, bundled up tightly in the thick blankets of the bed. Charles had gone off to get some medicine that could help her with her fever, a cold cloth already sitting on her forehead but not doing much. Raven had given her as much water as she could get her unconscious friend to drink, then proceeded to eat the food that Charles brought up for her.

"Raven?" The blue girl looked up toward the door, where Charles was waiting. "Your bath is ready," He said as he motioned backward to where he had shown her the bathroom already. Raven smiled her thanks and slipped off the bed carefully, leaving Jessica to sleep and get well.

"Thanks again, Charles."

"It's no trouble. Go on now, before the water cools."

Raven ran along and left Charles in the doorway to her friend's room, the telepath looking over to where said friend slept. Charles stood in the doorway, holding a small dish of medicine for her fever, until he heard the bathroom door down the hallway close before he stepped further into the room, his eyes fixed on the burnet sleeping in the bed. He couldn't stop the curiosity as he walked until he was standing at the side of the bed, next to Jessica.

After placing the medicine aside, he reached forward hesitantly, carefully stroking his middle finger over one of the raised blue veins around the girl's eyes. He jumped back in fright when she suddenly gasped and jerked awake, bright green eyes flying open. Charles landed back on his rear in surprise as the girl flew up into a sitting position, looking around herself in fright.

"You're safe," Charles said hurriedly. She looked down at where he was pulling himself up off the floor, her green eyes still wide and frightened.

"Where am I? Where's Raven? Who are you?" She asked in a rush, moving across the bed as the sheets fell away from her. Charles quickly rushed around the bed toward where she was crawling, trying to get her to calm down.

"It's alright, Raven's just fine, and she's in a bath right now. You're in my family home; my name's Charles Xavier," Charles introduced himself, watching as she finally seemed to calm down slightly. What could have caused her to wake up escaped him. She had stopped once she was on her feet again, her hands still grasping the sheets of the tall bed.

"I have to find Raven," She said suddenly, almost dazedly, and moved to walk around the bed. Her legs gave out beneath her and Charles quickly moved forward to sturdy her, letting her lean against him and the bed.

"Please, she's alright but you need to rest."

"But what is going on?" She asked desperately.

"_It's alright,"_ Charles said through her mind, trying to get her to understand. "_You're among friends."_ Jessica looked at him in complete and utter shock, unable to say another thing. "_I admit that I'm very curious about what you can do._"

"You're-"

"A telepath, yes. What about you? What is your ability? Raven has already shown me what she is capable of when I found her trying to steal from the kitchen, but she's yet to tell me of your own specialty." Charles couldn't help but recoil when she suddenly frowned, her green eyes blurring with tears. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you!"

"_Everything."_ He suddenly heard inside his mind, his own body tensing as he looked at the girl before him. "_Because now,_" Her voice trailed off, pausing for a moment inside his mind. "_I'm a telepath, too._"

Charles stepped away from her in shock, watching as tears fell from her eyes, rolling over the strange blue veins around her eyes. It was such a strange feeling when he realized that he mind was inside of his own. Was this what it felt like to others when he probed inside their minds? It was rather odd of a feeling, like someone was giving your brain a message.

* * *

><p><strong>I'm really looking forward to writing this story! I loved the movie and I have a lot of idea's on what I can do with this story, so many actually that I don't know what to do when because there are so many options!<strong>


	2. Shards of a Broken Mind

**Illuminated**

**Shards of a Broken Mind**

"Raven?" Jessica called as she walked around the mansion, looking around for her friend. Her long brown hair reached down to her mid back, falling in loose curls. Her matured face had gained in colour over the years at the mansion in New York with Charles Xavier, her skin reaching a regular pinkish peach tone instead of the usual and unhealthy pale white from her days on the streets.

Letting out a huff when her friend didn't call back to her, she concentrated on where the morphing mutant was. A pulse went through her mind when she was able to locate Raven's subconscious, the other mutant sitting in the kitchen as she nursed a tea and tried to help Charles with his entry paper for Oxford.

Racing down toward the kitchen, she soon stood behind the other two mutants silently, watching as Raven tried to suppress a yawn as Charles read through the paper in his hand. She held a smile in as she watched her two closest friends, one doing their best not to fall asleep while the other was to happily blissful to notice.

"Charles," She started quietly, causing him to stop reading and look back at her, surprised at finding her there. He was getting very advanced with his telepathy, but he still had trouble locking-on to Jessica's erratic movements. "I think you should give Raven a break."

"Yes, I need a break," Raven agreed as she rose to her feet, smiling happily at the elder female in the room. "You two talk, I'm going to…go."

As Raven scurried off Jessica couldn't help but to smile at her friend's back, knowing just how glad she was to truly be there. Raven had always lived through the harshness of the world and became afraid of most people when her mutation evolved and she became what she was. Blue and patterned, with bright red hair and yellow eyes. She had always hated what she was before but she seemed to live through the difference now. Even if she always hid herself.

"_You don't need to try and save her all the time, now,"_ Charles said gently through her mind, making her look back over to him. "_She's safe here and so are you._"

"Yea, I know," She replied aloud, moving to sit down where Raven had been prior. "So, Mr. Xavier, let's here that paper." Charles laughed softly, placing his paper down and turning to face her fully. She raised a single eyebrow at him in confusion, knowing that he always loved to work on his paper when he was into it. And with how enthusiastic he had been reading to Raven she was sure that he really was into working on it.

"Your eyes," He said calmly, his hand moving out to stroke one of the blue veins around her eyes. "You need to remember that you have limits and using your gifts too much will cause your brain to overload." Jessica huffed a laugh and turned her face away from him, letting his hand fall away. She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath to calm herself, feeling the tightness of her skin around her eyes begin to fade away.

"Better?" She asked, turning to face him again, the blue veins no longer visible. But Charles was frowning as he reached out to her again, the knuckle of his index finger brushing beneath her nose and drawing back. A smear of blood covered his finger, making Jessica flinch and cover her nose and mouth.

"You can't supress it like that, Jessica-Lee, it's unhealthy."

"So you say now, but in an hour you're going to be telling me that I need to learn to adapt and practice my powers," She countered, glaring at him lightly. "Which is it, Charles, do you want me to learn to control my abilities or do you want me to hide it away like you do with Raven?"

"Jessica-"

"Consider your power lucky, Charles," she snapped without thinking, "You don't have a deformity that physically affects the way you live!" The cup of tea that Raven had been drinking shattered where it had been left on the table, the glass and flavoured water flying out onto the wooden surface. Both mutants jumped up at the sudden explosion, Charles snatching his paper into his hands while Jessica rushed to get a drying cloth and clean up the mess.

As she wadded up the liquid—avoiding the glass to the best of her ability—she couldn't stop herself from gasping in near despair at the fact that she was still as dangerous as she had always been. She was no closer to learning to control all of the power she absorbs than she had been in the past.

"I'm sorry, Charles, I didn't mean for that to happen," She gasped out as tears burned her eyes, her hands stilling as she held the cloth loosely. She could feel Charles gently take her shoulders in his hands, giving them a reassuring squeeze.

"You'll get a hold of things, Jessica, I'm positive."

"I don't know if I can, Charles," Jessica admitted as she looked back at him over his shoulder, her tears beginning to flow down her cheeks in single drops. "And what if I can't. I might hurt someone, Charles, I might hurt you or Raven and I can't bare that thought."

He engulfed her in his arms from behind, hearing as glass shifted on the table when she completely dropped the towel so she could raise her hands and take a hold of his. They stood like that for a couple of minutes, just letting the other be there. Charles soon moved her to sit down, taking a clean cloth from the kitchen and wiping away the blood that had begun to dry beneath her nose. He could still see the despair that lingered in her electric green eyes.

"You'll learn, Jessica, and Raven and I will always be there for you," He assured, lilting her face up to look at him as he set the soiled cloth aside.

"_I know,_" she whispered gently inside his mind with a soft smile gracing her lips. But the happiness she tried to portray never reached her eyes and Charles felt his heart constrict in his chest at the sight. Jessica had faced hardship from day one and there were times that he could do nothing to assist her. Because of her ability to duplicate powers of other mutants, she was often riddled with migraines, dizzy spells and days of complete exhaustion. He could try and calm her mind with his telepathy to the best of his ability, but other times his assistance only made the headaches worse.

"Let me clean this mess up and then you can read me your paper, alright?" She asked gently, moving to pick up the pieces of glass that littered along the table. Charles moved to help her, both of them beginning to put all the pieces of the shattered tea cup onto the cloth. Charles kept a close eye on her, seeing the veins around her eyes slowly beginning to appear again as she let her morphing ability slip out of place.

"You didn't get cut?" Charles asked with concern as he took her hands and looked them over for any sign that she could have gotten a nick from the glass.

"I'm fine, Charles," She assured, swapping the position of their hands and patting his gently before she took the cloth full of glass to throw the shards away. She took the bloodied dish cloth as well, leaving Charles to his own. He couldn't help but let his mind drift towards her own, looking into her thoughts quietly.

She had expertly buried her thoughts away from him, placing them so deep inside of her psyche that he would have had to delve far deeper into her mind than he ever had before and he was unwilling to act with such disrespect. He knew that she trusted him not to go so far into her mind and that reason alone was why she placed her thoughts there in the first place.

All he could feel instead were her conflicting emotions, the sharp edges of her anger making her mind raw and tired. Trying his best to project calming relief to her anger, he relaxed slightly when he felt the anger begin to ebb away into a grudging acceptance. He knew that it wasn't the best that he could do—or that she could do, for that matter—but it was far better than the pain that her anger brought on. It was a sharp and dangerous as the shattered glass they had been cleaning up. But the acceptance that he felt from her now was like sea glass, dulled from years in harsh salt water tides.

"Alright," Jessica said suddenly, flawlessly interrupting his thoughts. She took the seat beside him again while she handed him the paper that he had moved aside to save it from the tea.

Later that night, Charles was sitting in the study that he had nearly lived in since he first began school, placing the finishing corrections on his paper that Jessica had helped to point out. Said woman was sitting in one of the overstuffed chairs that were on the other side of his desk, a book on dream interpretation in her hands.

Soon, he had been concentrating on his paper for a good hour and the only sound in the room was the scratching of his pen on paper and the flipping of pages a few feet away. He could faintly hear the wall clock ticking away down the hall and could feel an irritating building sensation in his mind. He thought at first that he might be catching a cold because of the familiar congested feeling, but when he finally stopped the address it he became aware of what the actual sensation was.

Looking over to where Jessica sat he could see that she had fallen into the position that her neck was bent forward and the hand that wasn't holding her book was gently cradling the bridge of her nose. He could see that the once blue veins around her eyes were beginning to turn a faint green, blending to match her irises. Letting out a soft sigh he dropped the paper on his desk and rose from his chair, marching over to take the book from her hands.

"Charles-"

"I won't hear it, Jessica," Charles interrupted as he moved another chair over to sit it in front of her own, soon taking residence in the chair so he was eye level with her. "Come on, you know it'll just keep getting worse."

Jessica let out a defeated sigh, knowing better than to try and challenge him on the subject from many failed attempts in the past, and dropped her once folded legs off of the chair and moved hers closer to him. Charles raised his hands up to her head, watching as she closed her eyes, and placed his fingertips against her temples gently.

He could feel the painful throb behind his own eyes as he opened up her mind slowly and carefully, feeling the swirl of her emotion brushing against his mind as he pushed in further. He caught the flicker of an image every now and again, some of Raven or himself, others of facts that her mind had stored away from the book she was reading.

But he couldn't seem to find the build up inside of her mind that was causing the headache and unwelcome pressure between their mental connection.

Letting out an irritated sigh he shifted in his seat toward the edge, so that he was closer to her and adjusting his hands to place another finger on either of her temples. Taking a deep breath, he tried again. Her subconscious wrapped around his like a blanket, welcoming the familiar presence. She was relaxed against his hands, allowing him full access to her thoughts. He began to sift through her mind carefully, picking along things that could have caused a build. He didn't know how long he was inside of her mind before he found what he was looking for.

It was her anger. The anger that he had helped to subside and press down from earlier that day. It had manifested inside of her mind, blocking off some of her emotions and control like a cork in a wine bottle. He flattened his palms out along the sides of her head and gave a huge, mental shove against the block. Jessica gasped and flung her head backwards, breaking the connection between them. Charles was vaulted back into his own body, leaving him disoriented for a good minute as he looked toward the gasping Jessica.

"Are you alright? I didn't hurt you?" He asked with a worried tremor in his voice.

Jessica just shook her head lightly, still trying to gain some solid ground again. Her head was spinning with the harshness of a shove inside of her mind, leaving her world tipping upside down. Charles had never had to use such a harsh technique whenever her mind built up with unused power so neither expected the repercussions that it brought. He carefully steadied her on her chair when her saw her sway slightly, leaning her against the back of the chair to let her feel something solid.

"Come on, you need to lay down." Carefully lifting her to her feet, keep his arm around her shoulders, he led her over to the couch on the opposite side of the room. He laid her down on the cushions with care, letting her rest her head on one of the over-stuffed pillows. "I'll get you some water."

Guilt gripped him at the sight of her fatigued face and quivering form. He shouldn't have done such a thing without pulling back and asking her beforehand.

"Don't worry about me," She suddenly whispered, catching his hand as he rose to his feet and moved to fetch her the glass of water. "I'm strong and it was the only way. Thank you." She held his hand in her own warm on, her fingers running along the tendons on the back of his hand for a moment. She offered a tired smile and pulled his hand to her lips to place a chaste kiss on the tips of his fingers, the ones that had been pressed to her temples minutes before.

Even in such a state she was looking out for him.

He couldn't help but wonder when he had stopped looking out for her and fell back to let her take over with looking after him.

* * *

><p><strong>I wanted to put this chapter up quickly after the last one so that you all had a better feel for the story. I don't really think that prologues tell much about the story or the writer's style so I thought you all might enjoy this better. Hope you liked it and keep reading! <strong>

**~stAnd out - SHOUT OUT**


	3. Work Hard

**Illuminated**

**Work Hard**

Looking down at the newly opened letter in her hand, Jessica couldn't help but to want to break down and cry. She hadn't been accepted. Falling into the chair that was seated behind Charles' study desk, she tried to hold back the burning in her eyes. She wouldn't be going to England with Charles and Raven. She hadn't been accepted into the University.

Charles' familiar presence began to approach from down the hall, making her jump to her feet and wipe at the welling tears in her eyes, destroying the evidence. She snatched up the letter, cramming it into her psychology book rather violently. Charles rounded the corner right as she was picking up her books and notes to get ready to depart.

"So this is where you've been hiding," He greeted with a soft laugh, stopping just inside the office. His hands were tucked into his trouser pockets and he had a leisurely smile on his face. Jessica smiled back at the sight of him in such a good mood. "Raven has been bothering me all day about the three of us going out and celebrating. What do you say?"

"Of course!" She agreed as cheerfully as she could, picking up her last stack of papers. "When do we leave?"

"Not until this evening. She wants to go out drinking even if she's not old enough," He explained, stepping out of the way to let her pass. Jessica scoffed quietly as she turned the corner on the left.

"She just wants to see you get rejected, Charles."

"You two are so cruel to me," He protested as he jogged up to her side. She just shook her head in amusement and continued her trek toward her room. "Besides, it's not as easy as you would think. I bet that you can't pick up one guy at the bar tonight. And you have to approach them, not let them come to you."

"Oh, Charles," Jessica said as she nudged her door open with her foot, turning to face the man that had followed her to her room. "When have I ever lost a bet?" Nudging the door closed behind her, she could see the look of surprise on Charles' face before the door closed, making her snort as she tried to hold back a laugh.

"_And no using your mutation,"_ He added through her thoughts, causing her to roll her eyes. He couldn't just call through the door like a normal person. "_This way is far more amusing."_

"_Get out of my head before I give you a migraine,"_ She threatened, his mind silent as a reply. Smiling to herself secretly, she moved over to her own small bookshelf and began to place her books back inside, forgetting about the letter that was stuffed inside of the psychology book for the time being. She was going to go out and having a good night with her two best friends and she wasn't going to let some rejection letter get the better of her. She was going to have fun and show up Charles on picking up the opposite sex.

Charles turned away from Jessica's door, letting the connection between their minds relax so that he was still able to sense her but not read her mind or communicate with it. The last thing he felt was her amusement before he backed out of her psyche and it pleased him to know that she was in a good mood that day. She had been fretting all week because she didn't get her letter from Oxford yet while his has come and he had been accepted.

"_Jessica thinks it's a great idea,"_ Charles told Raven suddenly, feeling her surprise at the sudden voice inside her mind.

"Don't do that!" She yelled from her own room, the sound of something clattering to the floor. He was fairly certain it was a hairbrush. "Seven years and I still can't get used to that!"

Raven never ceased to be amusing at the right times, it seems that the good mood of the day was contagious. With nothing else to do now that his two friends had disappeared to get ready for the evening Charles decided to head toward his study and tidy up the remaining mess that Jessica was sure to have left behind.

Turning back in the direction of the study, he stopped in his tracks when he felt a sudden sadness overwhelm him.

"Jessica?" He mumbled to himself quietly, turning toward the door directly to his left. She probably didn't know that he was there, expecting him to already have left when he let the connection between them go lax. He contemplated on knocking and asking her what was wrong, but the sadness was buried just as quickly as it had appeared.

Clearly, she didn't want him to know that something was wrong.

Worry still tugging at his heart, he walked away from her room and toward his study. She would tell him when she wanted. He had promised her that he would respect her privacy and wasn't going to break that promise by getting caught snooping around inside of her mind. She knew what it felt like when he was reading her thoughts and was able to effortlessly block him out when she felt him in her mind.

It was hours before he saw either of the girls again, but Raven ended up appearing first—which in itself was a first. She was wearing a skirt that skimmed just above her knees and a pair of expensive black leather boots that she had begged him to get her last Christmas. He was glad to see that she was sticking to a more modest neckline this time, with a fall coat draping her shoulders.

"Is Jessica still in her room?" She asked, surprise covering her face. She hadn't expected the lateness of the other woman any more than Charles had.

"I'm coming!" Jessica's voice called from the hallway at the top of the stairs. They could hear the heels of her boots as she jogged down the hallway, the carpet dulling the sound slightly. "Sorry, my hair decided today to become difficult." She quickly began down the stairs, her knee length skirt fluttering around her knees. While Raven was wearing a tight skirt hers was loose and fluttered and wound around her legs as she moved.

Charles nearly choked when he was able to see her from the waist up.

She was wearing a tight halter top with a neckline that showed off her cleavage but didn't make her look like an escort. The shirt itself was a perfect white, drawing attention toward her when she was in such a sinful article but in the colour of purity. Her eyes were adorned with black and pale green makeup, drawing out the green in her fake green/blue eyes. Her dark hair was pulled up in a loose clip on the back of her head, curled strands falling around her face and neck.

"Oh, my," Raven whistled when she turned around to see her sister figure standing at the bottom of the stairs.

"You like it?"

"Yes!" Raven cheered as she ran up to Jessica and lifted her arm to spin her on the spot, her skirt swirling out around her like pale blue waves of the Caribbean sea. Her heeled ankle high boots tapped on the floor as Raven began to swirl and spin the elder female, the two laughing whole heartedly. If Charles hadn't know any better than he would have thought they were actually sisters.

"What do you think, Charles?" Jessica finally asked as she stepped away from Raven to let him see her full outfit. She turned more slowly, allowing him to see the large span of skin that was visible on her back. Something in him seemed to snap.

He stood still for a moment, his face blank as he watched her model the outfit. Her smile faded slightly when she saw the look on his face and Raven glared at him from over Jessica's shoulder. He opened his mouth to tell her that she looked wonderful, but instead he ended up blurting out—

"Go and change."

He pointed back up the stairs and both women exchanged a look before glancing back at him with evil smirks on their faces.

"Sorry, Charlie boy, but I plan on winning this bet," Jessica answered, striding up to him. A loud tap accented her steps until she was standing directly in front of him, the heels placing them at the same height. "And I'm driving."

Before Charles had a moment to react Jessica had already slipped her hand into the pocket of his trousers and snatched the car keys to his sports car. He only regained the movement to his body when she and Raven took off running toward the door. When he finally called out to them they were already out the front door, laughing and cheering.

"Jessica-Lee!" Charles yelled as he ran after the two women, closing the large door behind him with a loud bang. Jessica was already adjusting the seat of his car to her height, the door locked beside her. Charles glared through the glass, knocking on it loudly. She looked up to him and smiled innocently, shaking her head and ignoring his request.

"I suggest you get in, Charles," Raven said from where she was getting ready to climb into the passenger side back seat. "You can have passenger." Charles held back an irritated cuss as he marched around the car, hearing the engine roar to life as he was walking around the front toward the opposite side.

"Switch seats with me, Jessica," Charles ordered as soon as he was sitting down. Jessica just smiled and pressed down on the gas, closing Charles' car door from the forward movement and launching them down the driveway. "Jessica! Slow down!"

Jessica could feel the panic inside of his mind and eased off the gas, slowing to a stop at the end of the driveway. She looked over to him in the darkness of the car, hearing Raven gasping in the back seat as she tried to stop from laughing. It was rare that Charles lost his cool and Raven always got a kick when he did.

"Charles, do you want to drive?" Jessica asked, getting a subdued glare from him. She was in a playful mood, probably because of the makeup and outfit she was wearing, and looked back at Raven. The blond morphing mutant gave her a curious look before she watched as Jessica unbuckled her seatbelt. But the way that she had parked ended with her door directly beside the large wall of stone that made up the sides of the gates.

"Jess, what-"

Her jaw dropped as she watched Jessica pull herself up in her seat and swing her legs over the center consol. Charles jumped where he was sitting, not expecting her to suddenly be in his lap. Raven clapped a hand over her mouth to stop from squealing at the sight of her best friends. Jessica sat herself with her back against the door and looked over to Charles' shocked face.

"Well? Move."

"I can't fit over the center like that, Jessica," He stuttered out, making Raven begin to snort in laughter.

"Well, alright then." Jessica soon manoeuvred herself back into the driver's seat, Raven cackling in the back seat and Charles still too shocked to move. Jessica chuckled to herself quietly before she started the car again and peeled out of the driveway to head toward the city. Dark was falling around them and setting the perfect mood for the women.

Charles was beginning to regret letting Raven talk him into such a thing as a night on the town.

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><p><strong>A bit more playful in this chapter :) The next one will be the bar scene! Hope to get lots of reviews, it's always wonderful to hear about how everyone likes the story. Does anyone know what kind of car Charles drives? I tried to look it up but I can't find it anywhere<strong>


	4. Party Harder

**Illuminated**

**Party Harder**

Jessica and Raven watched as Charles flirted with a young blond, but she didn't seem as into it as he did. Charles was attractive but sometimes his brain ran his mouth and he said things that someone didn't understand. In the end, his genius mind made him look like an idiot. Jessica could tell that he was trying so hard to get some kind of a response from her but was failing.

"I feel sorry for him," She admitted as she leaned toward Raven. "Maybe I shouldn't try to win."

"No! Charles' ego needs some deflating. Don't give in like that, you've got to win," Raven protested, looking over to where Charles was smiling and stroking at the blonds arm. Jessica shook her head in amusement before she began to scope out the bar they were in.

"See anyone that looks like they could tick him off to be with me?" Jessica asked as she leaned forward more to speak directly into Raven's ear. The blond turned her head to look around the bar, their table located in the corner and giving them a view of the entire place. She made a soft humming noise in thought, looking around for someone with the qualities that annoyed Charles.

"Far corner, scruffy looking. He's smoking a cigar," Raven whispered back, nodding her head in the man's direction. Jessica leaned forward for a better look in the dim light, a smile touching her face. He was indeed smoking a cigar, a plaid shirt rolled up on muscled biceps and a beer sitting in front of him. He was drinking Canadian.

"Perfect." Jessica beamed, squeezing Raven's shoulder as she got to her feet. Leaving her coat draped over the back of her chair she kissed her sister figure on the cheek and made her way over toward the man, letting some of her façade slip so that her vibrant green eyes were visible. She chanced a glance at Charles, seeing the blond was collecting her things. She couldn't help but feel sorry for him, but she also knew that a bet was a bet.

"Hey," She greeted as soon as she was standing next to the scruffy man's table. He looked up at her as he pulled the cigar from his lips, his brown eyes a dark contrast to Charles' bright blue ones. She smiled at him and motioned to the seat across from him. "Here with someone?"

"Nope," He answered tersely, making her frown a moment before she fell to sit across from him, smiling again.

"Mind of I join you then?" She asked, looking him directly in the eye. She would see him pause as he lifted his beer to his lips, probably because of the green of her eyes. "I mean, it's no fun drinking alone, hm?"

Raven couldn't help herself from laughing as she watched Charles bomb and Jessica flaunt it. Those two really needed to get together before someone got hurt. She watched as the blond walked away from Charles, seeing his crestfallen expression. He looked over to where he had left them sitting, having to do a double-take when he saw that it was only Raven sitting at the table. She wiggled her fingers in a type of wave before promptly pointing over to where Jessica was sitting.

She could see his confusion as he looked over to where she was pointing before he nearly fell from his seat. She laughed aloud at the look on his face and glanced over to the table that Jessica was sitting in, nearly losing it herself when she saw that Jessica and the stranger were both leaning forward and whispering to one another. They were only inches apart and Jessica's heeled boot was stroking up and down he man's leg.

"Oh, dear."

"You let you go over to that guy?" Charles asked as he took Jessica's abandoned seat.

"Well, it seems like she's going to win the bet, huh?"

"_He could be dangerous, Raven_," Charles said through her mind, making her roll her eyes and look over to him in irritation.

"It's dangerous whenever anyone is at a bar, Charles. Those women that you hit on might just think the same thing about you that you're thinking about him," She snapped back, looking over to where Jessica and the man were. She promptly froze in her seat when she saw Charles marching over toward the man and Jessica, cursing her in head and tensing in her seat.

Jessica smiled at the rugged handsomeness of the man before her. Apparently his name was James and he was from Canada—drawing her interest. She couldn't help to actually be attracted to the man and felt slightly guilty about leading him on for a bet. She smiled at him again and reached across the table to touch his arm, but her hand was intercepted before she got the chance.

Looking up, her eyes widened at the sight of Charles standing to the side of the table.

"_Excuse yourself, we're leaving,_" He commanded through the mental link, giving her a hard stare. His usual calm and pleasant demeanour had nearly vanished and she could feel the anger and disappointment that welled within him.

"Charles," She started verbally, "This is James Logan," she introduced. "James, this is my friend Charles." Snatching her arm from his grasp, she smiled over to James again. The larger man looked at Charles, sizing him up. He was not only taller than Charles by a good few inches but he was huge compared to Charles' more discrete physique.

"We need to get going, Jessica. Raven's not feeling well and needs to get home," Charles said, the authority in his voice making Jessica pause. Nodding her head she offered an apologetic looked over to James.

"I'm so sorry, James. I need to get going. It's my sister." Getting to her feet, she felt her telepathic friend's hand grip her arm again and guide her toward the door at a brisk pace. Raven scurried to collect her and her friend's things from the table and follow after them. Charles quickly shucked his blazer off and threw it over Jessica's shoulders to cover the revealing top that she was wearing.

None of them said a thing as they all piled back into Charles' car, with Charles behind the wheel and Jessica curled up in the passenger seat. She knew that he had his reasons behind taking her away from James, but she also knew that those reasons had a selfish tilt to them. He wouldn't do that only because he knew he wasn't going to win the bet, he didn't trust her not to control or bring shame to herself.

Raven was quiet the entire time, looking between her two best friends from the back seat. The night that had originally been meant to celebrate Charles' acceptance into Oxford had turned into a battle of testosterone between Charles and whoever Jessica decided to pick up. She should have known that this would happen as soon as Jessica told her about the bet.

They pulled up outside the front of the large mansion less than thirty minutes later and Jessica nearly launched herself out of the car. She slammed the door closed behind her harshly and marched up the stone steps that led in the house. Charles called after her but she had already stepped into the mansion and slammed the door behind her as hard as she could.

Running up the stairs toward her room, she pulled her boots off her feet when they slowed her down. She ran up to her room as fast as she could, throwing her boots down on the floor and locking herself inside her sanctuary. Her eyes burned as her emotions began to mount; anger, rejection, heartache, guilt. She didn't know what to do.

Pulling off her halter top harshly, she threw it toward the bookshelf, knocking her psychology book off the wooden unit. The pages fell open and the rejection letter from Oxford fell out, causing her to gasp in sorrow and fall to the ground beside her bed, wrapping her arms around herself as she let her tears fall. She was a disappointment.

A soft knock sounded from her door but she just ignored the noise, wiping at the salty liquid on her face. She was sure that she looked a mess. Her façade had slipped entirely, the veins standing out around her eyes, the backs of her hands and underside of her forearms and her once neat makeup trailing down her face.

"Jessica?" Charles called through the door quietly, not wanting to take the chance of stepping into her chaotic mind.

"Go away!" She yelled back, her voice cracking. Charles flinched at the broken sound, placing his hand on the door. He could tell that she was crying by the sound of her voice and the fact that she was refusing to open the door.

"Please, Jessica, just talk to me," Charles called through the thick wood. He tried to hear if she was moving on the other side or was just going to ignore him. Leaning his head against the cold wood, he let out a remorseful sigh. "Jessica."

The door suddenly opened, Charles quickly catching himself on the doorframe as he looked toward the woman on the other side of the passage. His eyes widened at the sight of her standing before him in nothing but her skirt and bra. Her makeup had run around her eyes and on her cheeks, leaving darkened black lines mingling with the green ones that were already producing through her skin.

"Am I that terrible?" She asked quietly, her voice cracking in desperation. "I can't have one good night but you can take a chance at anything with a set of cute legs and breasts?" Charles' chest constricted as he tried to avoid looking at the exposure of skin on her torso, the white wrap of a bra tightly holding her breasts and her hips exposed in her skirt. But the sight of harsh blue veins on her arms brought him pause.

"Jess-"

"Would you stop worrying about my damned mutation!" She yelled, swatting at his arms as he tried to grab her arm. She spun around to face her back to him, stepping over one of her large books in the process. Charles caught sight of a familiar emblem on the corner of a piece of paper in the book and bent down to retrieve it. Unfolding the rest of the paper, he looked over the first sentence.

_Miss. Sharp, we regret to inform you-_

The paper was suddenly snatched from his hands and torn in half by a very angered woman. Tears were falling down Jessica's face as she tore at the paper angrily, ripping and re-ripping it. Charles closed the door behind him and took Jessica's frantic hands in his own gently, holding onto her even as she fought against him. He didn't say anything as he let the torn paper fall down to the floor at their feet and pulled her up to him gently, enveloping her in his arms.

"…_the three of us going out and celebrating. What do you say?"_

He hung his head in regret when he realized that he should have known sooner what was upsetting her. She hadn't been accepted into Oxford University in England like he had, meaning that she would have to go to a different university to finish her education on Psychology and Sociology. She quivered in his hold, her bare skin cold in his hands from exposure to the air. His blazer had been thrown onto her bed as soon as she had stepped into her room, her boots thrown off to the side.

"I'm sorry, Jessica. I shouldn't have acted the way that I did tonight," He whispered into her curled hair, the strands tickling his chin.

"Am I so horrid?" She mumbled against his chest, her arms limp at her sides. "I can't even flirt with a guy?"

Charles shushed her gently and patted her hair gently, taking his blazer from the bed and raising it to her shoulders. He wrapped it loosely around her, holding the front closed. Her makeup had begun to run in black and green lines down her face, smudging from where her cheek had touched his chest. His once white shirt was probably stained by now.

"Why don't you go take a nice warm shower and then get some sleep. We'll worry about this in the morning, alright?" She nodded numbly and turned away from him, beginning to walk toward the door. Charles draped an arm over her shoulder and guided her the rest of the way toward the bathroom, Raven standing in her doorway with a worried look painting her features.

"_Can you keep her company?" _He asked her telepathically. She nodded silently and moved after them, taking Charles' place once they reached the washroom. He watched as the two women disappeared behind the door, remaining standing in the hallway. He could feel that she had broken the connection between the completely and he would need to physically rebuild it to make it as strong as it had been before.

The only downside to having another telepathic in the house was that she could turn his power against him. And at times like this he admitted that he deserved it.

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><p><strong>I'm sorry that this chapter has taken <em>forever<em> to come out, but I've been busy lately. Exams are coming up and now I need to worry about Christmas as well. It's all just a bit overwhelming. Does anyone else get the feeling that their teachers are plotting against them? That they just plan on giving you a major assignment in every class just to piss you off? That's how I feel.**

**Anyway, please review! I really want to get your feedback on this story. That, and reviews are like fuel to the fire, it keeps me going! :)**


	5. Actions of the Misguided

**Illuminated**

**Actions of the Misguided**

Jessica looked up at the ceiling of the bathroom, gliding her fingers along the surface of the water in the tub. It had turned lukewarm in the time that she had been lying in the large porcelain bowl, but she barely even noticed it. Her mind was elsewhere, everywhere. Raven sat beside the tub on a pile of towels, her fingers combing through her sisters hair wet hair.

"I think that—in a way—what he did was actually kind of sweet." Jessica tilted her head to give the blond a blank stare, causing Raven to glare back. "Would you just think about it? When has Charles ever lost his cool that much? He wasn't even calm. He's _always _calm."

"I don't know how you can find someone marching up to you while you _actually having a good time_ and then yanking them away from it with about the grace of a freight train. It was rude, embarrassing and-"

"Oddly touching," Raven supplied. Jessica sighed and sunk down into the waters, her brown hair escaping from Raven's fingers. She stuck herself down until her nose was just above the water, giving her just enough space to breathe. "Come on, he's just being protective."

"_He should have more respect and more faith. I wasn't actually going to do anything with the man, I would have made up some kind of an excuse before anything went anywhere_," Jessica said quietly in Raven's thoughts. The only problem with communicating through thoughts was that you couldn't hide your true emotion. In your physical voice you could, but there's no way of hiding your emotions in your mind.

Raven could feel the heartache inside of Jessica as she spoke to her telepathically, frustration crusting the edges like burns on wood. She could almost feel the heat of the flames that continued to lick its way along Jessica's insides, burning her and branding her. The flames could be both good and bad, burning her painfully with hate and anger or driving her forward like no other element could. At this point Raven wasn't sure which was the case. She was being driven into her hate and anger again.

"You'll always have us," She whispers as she pulls herself up onto her knees and begins to stroke her knuckles along the blue/green veins that stained Jessica's skin. "I promised you all those years ago that I'd never leave your side and I plan on keeping that promise for as long as we both live, and I know that Charles would never intentionally harm you or me. His heart's strong and in the right place, it's just that sometimes his heart takes a course of action before his brain has a chance to stop it."

Jessica could feel her eyes pricking with tears as Raven spoke, knowing that it was all the truth. She was suddenly very aware of the cold and empty feeling in the back of her mind where she was always able to feel Charles' own mind. When she paid close attention to the place that Charles' connection had once occupied, it was like stepping from a fire warmed home into the chills of winter.

Rising from the tub slowly, Raven quickly scuttled over to the rack of clean towels and handed one to her, draping a second over her head to begin to dry her hair. Jessica smiled softly behind the soft white towel as the younger scrubbed at her head, wondering why Raven suddenly felt the need to baby her. She was a soft hearted woman but she wasn't that fragile. The shape-shifter was treating her like a house of glass caught up in a hurricane.

Soon bundled up in a towel and bathrobe, Jessica watched as Raven began to run a fresh bath for herself. She quickly pecked a kiss on her young adopted sisters temple before she made off toward her room with a 'have a wonderful bath' thrown out before the door was closed between them. She continued to towel at her hair as she walked down the hall, the air chilling her exposed, moist skin.

She had calmed considerably since she had slammed that first door when they got back from the bar and she was finally allowing herself to think clearly. And guilt was the first thing that came through; the second was what Raven had said about Charles. She grudgingly agreed that it was a strangely sweet thing, just the complete wrong way of showing it. Now that she was able to think through everything that had happened clearly, she knew that all the things that he did were out of concern toward her—whether it was when he was dragging her away from James at the bar or when he was trying to look at the veins on her arms while she was tearing herself apart before his eyes.

Changing into warm a shirt and a pair of soft and comfortable pants that she had stolen from Charles years before she quickly made her way toward his room, the closer of the two places that she knew he would be at the moment. Knocking on the thick wood, she tried to expand her mind and find him, but the separation between them left it cold. Her abilities didn't match up to Charles' and she wasn't able to catch him as easily because of the impeccable barriers he had constructed through the years.

The door opened a moment later, a very awake Charles Xavier standing in the in-between silently. She could see the warm glow of his reading lamp behind him, lighting the far corner of his room that was hidden from her view. He just offered a smile and stepped aside, one of his arms opening out in a sweeping gesture of acceptance. She stepped in quietly, looking over to a scattering of books that littered his bed.

"Jessica-"

She had already attached herself to him in a tight hug, her arms circling around his torso with all of her human strength. He said no more as he returned to embrace. She smiled softly against the soft feel of his housecoat against her cheek, the coarser material of his pyjamas beneath soothed by the cotton.

"Your sister's better at speeches than she gives herself credit for," Jessica finally whispered into his collar bone, slowly being lulled into a relaxed doze by his hands stroking along her scalp and through the wet, brushed strands of her hair.

She could feel as well as hear the chuckle that he issued. "She's your sister, too."

"Not at times when she shows me up she's not."

The two were soon lying out on Charles' bed, Jessica's head cradled on his shoulder with one of his arms draping around her neck. He was reading out of one of his fiction books that he always kept at hand when Jessica was around. Raven wasn't as in to the literature as the elder female was so moments that Charles and Jessica were able to share similar to the present situation quickly became bonding moments between the two. There was an entire section of the library dedicated to books that they had chosen to read together. But even if they were with the rest of the books it was easy to single them out. The spines were all cracked and worn from the number of times they were opened and closed, read and reread.

"I haven't the slightest idea on how you find it interesting to read a book of which you already know the ending," Charles would always say whenever she picked out a book that they had already read before, often times more than once.

She would reply the same way each time as well, "Knowing the ending of the story doesn't always ruin the story, it allows a sense of stability and control with knowing that the story is a good one."

Charles soon began to roll her hair along his free hand without realizing, sliding and spinning the slowly drying curls around his fingers. He paused in his reading when he realized that she hadn't made a sound in a couple of minutes and looked down at her, seeing her eyes closed and her lips parted in sleep. Smiling softly to himself he let his head rest on hers and wrapped his other arm more securely around her, the book still in hand.

Her hair was cold against his cheek because of the water that still lingered there but it was soft to the touch from the care she put into it. Forgetting about the reading lamp on the bedside table he soon found himself falling asleep as well, faintly feeling when Jessica moved around in his arms before settling once more. Her breath was like a warm breeze against his neck, the soft skin of her nose tickling his jaw.

Hours later, Raven went to her sister figure's room, wishing to speak about the nightmare that she had. The memories of before Charles still haunted both women from time to time but they were always there for each other and the solid ground that stood beneath them kept them in the new reality of their lives. But as she opened the door to find an empty room, she was shocked for the first time that her best friend wasn't there.

Slipping down the hallway toward her other best friend and childhood saviour's bedroom, she cracked the door open once more and peeked inside. The light that shown through the crack nearly made her draw back, but when she caught a glimpse of the sleeping forms on the bed she allowed herself to open the door more fully.

Jessica and Charles had curled up into one another in their sleep, the book that they had been reading draped over Jessica's back with the pages still open to the page that Charles had stopped at. The reading lamp beside the bed gave the room a warm glow and allowed Raven to see how closely the two seemed comfortable with one another.

She stepped carefully into the room, walking over to the edge of the bed where Charles was lying. Reaching across them, she gently plucked the book from his hand and marked the page before placing it down on the nightstand. Smiling over to her two friends, she noticed that Jessica looked more relaxed than she had all evening as she slept away her worries in Charles' embrace.

In truth, she had been trying to get Charles and Jessica together since high school, but the two seemed oblivious to her attempts and didn't react at all. Jessica seemed to think that Charles wouldn't think of her in that way and so she never let feelings develop for him, or she just ended up pressing them down. But Charles did show signs of caring for Jessica more than he let on but would never act on them because of her lack of response. Raven was tempted to just lock them in a room together until they sorted out their problems, but she knew that they could just as easily escape the room before anything ever happened.

She remembered when she had first tricked them into kissing with a small branch of fake mistletoe on the eve of Christmas. Jessica's face had lit up red like she had just stepped in from the cold while Charles just stared at the plastic plant for a few seconds before he gently pecked Jess on the cheek. Jessica was blushing red with a small smile on her face for the next hour, but neither commented on it again.

The next attempt was when there was a Valentines dance at their high school and she was able to convince the three of them to go together but she wandered off and left them to themselves. They disappointed her this time by just sitting at one of the tables and talking, Charles flirting with the odd girl that passed by. She was ready to slap him when he did that and quickly stole Jessica from his side so she didn't have to bear it.

Looking at them now, she knew that the connection between them was there; they just needed to find it. And they needed to do that on their own.

Charles was the solid ground that Jessica needed in her life, her mutation making it hard for her to cope with things. She was an empath, a telepath, a shape-shifter, a still new telekinetic and a hypokinetic. She had more to deal with on a day to day basis than she or Charles would ever be able to understand—even if Charles could read her mind he would never truly be able to comprehend the mental and physical fatigue that Jess felt. But he was there for her whenever her abilities caught up to her, bringing her back to reality.

Jessica was the only person that was able to set Charles straight aside from Raven, and even then she did a better job. Whenever Charles put himself into his schooling so much that he seemed to lose track of everything else in the world she was the one that brought him down off his high horse and back on his own two feet. She didn't let him obsess over menial things in his life every waking moment and kept him in line when he seemed to think that his ability was all that he needed.

Those two needed each other to keep themselves connected with reality.

Smiling to them one last time, Raven turned off the reading lamp beside the bed and shuffled out of the room, forgetting all about her nightmare.

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><p><strong>I know that quite a few of you might read this and think 'what is the point of this chapter?' and the answer is that it is for information and filling in a gap. I should have the next one out by tomorrow even at the latest, i still need to edit it. Please review, your comments are much appreciated. Although, my email has been going all weird on me and i can't get any emails from . Is anyone else having this problem?<strong>


	6. Blame and Guilt

**Illuminated**

**Blame and Guilt**

**~Eight Months Later~**

Jessica balanced a plate on either arm with another in each hand as she swayed her way through the tables, smiling to Raven as she took the order from a couple that had been seated in their section. Both were dressed in black and white uniforms, a white apron over their black pencil skirts that held a pocket for their pen and order books. They were forced to keep their hair up to stay professional and neither liked the thought much.

"Hello again," Jessica greeted the family as she appeared beside their table. She placed down the two dishes in her hands carefully before taking the plates off her arms and putting them in front of the appropriate person. "Is there anything else I can get you? A refill?" She asked, smiling to them softly.

"I would like some more coffee, if you'd please," The eldest woman present asked, holding up the pristine white cup. Jessica nodded and took the glass from her hand and made her way back toward the kitchens. Placing the cup in the pile of dishes that were to be washed, she picked a clean one from the rack and poured another cup of black coffee.

"Sorry that you had to serve them, I know they can be picky," A redheaded woman said as she moved up beside Jessica.

"It's no problem, hun. I know that you had a past with them," She assured quietly. Rebecca smiled to her as she tapped her hand affectionately before she made her way back to collect her orders. Jessica finished with the coffee and placed the pot back in place before she whisked out of the kitchen. After given the mug to the woman at the table, she turned to the newest customer to enter her section.

"Well, sir, I never thought you'd show tonight," She teased as soon as she was standing beside the two seat table but only on occupant. Bright blue eyes looked up from the biology book in the man's hands before a smile bloomed on his lips. "My name's Jessica and I'll be your waitress this evening," She said with a tone of mock in her voice.

"Well, Jessica, it's wonderful to meet you. You know, you look oddly familiar," The male burnet responded as he placed his book onto a clear place on the table. "Have we met before?" Leaning back in his chair, he lifted one arm to rest on the back and turned to face Jessica fully with a smirk painting his face.

"I don't believe so, I think I'd remember those eyes," She whispered as she bent down slightly to his level, her own smirk taking refuge on her face.

"Well in that case, I'm Charles Xavier," he introduced as he held out a hand to her. She laughed against her better judgement as she accepted his hand, shaking it. She could feel the swell of his telepathy against her own mind and allowed her barriers to drop around her to let him in, embracing the familiarity he provided in the vastness of strangers around her.

"Back to work, Jessica," One of the waiters walking past ordered, nearly bumping her with his tray. Jessica straightened up and reclaimed her hand from Charles, the both of them sighing as they returned to their original positions. Jessica's barriers rose back into place as she pulled out her pen and paper, smiling down at him.

"So, the usual or do you want to try something new this time?" She asked, watching him as he picked up the menu on his table. "They're trying out a couple of French dishes that come highly recommended," She offered, glancing over to his textbook as she did so.

Charles looked up to Jessica from the corner of her eye, the smile on her face seemed tense now that their moment had been ruined and he could see the tiredness in her eyes. She had been juggling between work and studying, wanting to get accepted into a school for next semester. He and Raven had tried to get her to slow down but she seemed to think that if she stopped to rest than everything was going to pass her by and she'd miss her chance.

"I'll just have my usual," He finally said, offering a smile as he handed her the menu. She rolled her eyes with a sigh but was smiling none the less. "Maybe next time," He offered, making her laugh.

"I wonder where I've heard that one before."

The restaurant slowly began to slow as the customers streamed out, finishing their meals and paying their bills before leaving. Jessica was collecting her tips and slipping them inside her pocket as she walked out to give Charles his bill, Raven already in the back room getting ready to leave for the night. It wasn't their night to help with closing. She stopped in her tracks when she looked up to see an attractive blond sitting across from Charles, her hand placed on his arm affectionately.

"Hey, tell Charles to pay quickly, I want to get home before-"

Raven's voice cut off as she stopped beside Jessica, looking up in the same direction as Jessica. She sighed irritably as she dropped her hands from doing up the buttons of her jacket. Of course Charles would have the inconvenient timing to go off and flirt with some woman just as Jessica was beginning to admit to having some sort of affection beyond siblings or friends for the blue eyed telepath.

"Here, give me that," Raven ordered as she took the black leather bound case from her friend, "You go and get ready to go. I'll take care of this," She said as she ushered her friend off. Shedding her jacket and placing it on the counter behind the receptions desk, she quickly marched over to Charles in her uniform and slapped the bill down on the table, causing the two occupants to jump. Raven levelled a glare at her brother.

"Where's Jessica?" Charles asked curiously, clearly not knowing at all that he had done something wrong and upset his previous server.

"I'm collecting your bill, she's getting ready to leave. We're just waiting on you now," she answered, placing her hands on her hips. In any other situation she would have been in serious trouble for acting so disrespectful to a customer, but Charles would never place a complaint against herself or Jessica.

"I'll speak with you later, Charles," The blond guest said with a smile as she stroked his arm before turning to leave, her heels tapping the hardwood floors loudly as she departed.

"Have I done something wrong?" Charles finally asked as he turned to his sister, his blue eyes completely clueless. Raven rolled her eyes and turned to leave as he paid his bill. She found Jessica in the back room changing from her comfortable work shoes into the black leather boots that Charles had gotten the both of them when they arrived in England at Raven's pout and plead. They were far too spoiled and both knew it.

"I'm sorry, Jess," Raven said as she moved to sit down beside her, wrapping an arm around her. But it was already too late. Jess had completely shut down again.

"It's fine. Nothing's changed. He's just the same flirt that he was in high school and will be all through university," She said as she got to her feet and adjusted her skirt, brushing off Raven's arm. The blond sighed as she pulled her hair from its bun and moved to join her sister. Jessica's walk was brisk, her boots nearly silent as she walked across the floors compared to the woman that had left Charles earlier.

Jessica snatched the leather book from Charles as she walked past his table, the man himself standing and pulling on his coat. Charles looked after Jessica before he turned his attention to Raven, who simply shook her head as she followed after Jessica. The burnet handed over the money that paid Charles' bill while she collected her tip.

"Jessica, would you just stop for a moment!" Charles called out as Jessica marched down the cool streets of England's damp evening climate. Raven rushed to keep up with Jessica's pace, both she and Charles jogging to try and stay behind her before she left them in her rush for departure. "Jessica!"

"What?" She snapped as she whirled around, nearly glaring at him.

"What did I do to make you so angry with me?" Charles asked desperately as he stepped up to her, Raven stopping a couple of yards behind him. Jessica looked over to see a couple looking at the strange and glared at them before she turned and began walking again. Charles ignored the couple completely as he moved to follow after the enraged mutant.

"Just leave me along, Charles," She nearly begged, the veins around her eyes beginning to appear. But Charles took hold of her arm in a forceful but not harmful grip and pulled her back around to face him, his cobalt blue eyes clashing with her unmasked electric green ones.

"Jessica, I have a right to know what I've done without even knowing," Charles nearly ordered, his voice still calm against all odds. Jessica's was sharp and angered while his never even rose to a point of irritation.

"The women!" She finally yelled, drawing the attention of the few other people on the street with them. But neither paid them any mind, because she continued, "Not just the one tonight, but the one the night before and the night before. Do you have any idea how…irritating and _offending _it is to see you with a different woman every time it suits your fancy?"

Charles was dumbstruck. This wasn't what he had been expecting at all. Jessica nor Raven had ever complained about the girls that he flirted with while they were nearby, but clearly he had been missing the signs entirely. One didn't just develop hatred to all women the spoke with him flirtatiously over the span of a day; this anger she felt had been a long time in the making. No wonder Raven had been irritated with him as well. The two were closer than he and Jessica and they were able to see within the other's mind.

"Why didn't you just speak with me about it?" Charles asked gently, releasing her arm to take a hold of her hand. Her fingers were chilled from the night air and cold to the touch.

"Would you have really understood? Would you have really taken me seriously?" She countered, her sudden anger melting down into defeat. Her once tense shoulders slumped down and her glare faded into a depressed frown. Charles knew at that moment that he would have probably only brushed her off and said that she was overreacting. Jessica had pointed out in the past that he tended to become oblivious to things and now he knew that she was had been telling him the truth.

"I'm so sorry, love," He finally whispered, still holding her hand gently. "I am, believe me." Pulling her into a hug, he would feel her other arm hesitantly wrap around his back as he rested his cheek on her head. She had relaxed considerably from the first moment that she had walked from the restaurant and he was relieved. Stress tended to affect her telepathy and give her headaches that often crippled her for hours.

"It's alright, I guess I did kind of overreact," She admitted into his coat.

"No," He said quickly as he pulled back from the hug, looking her in the eye, "You didn't. You have every right to be angry with me. I've been pushing you and Raven aside and I shouldn't have. You two are my oldest friends, you deserve better."

Jessica hid the hurt at the mention of friendship between them and only nodded her head to show that she understood. She felt slightly guilty that she was making him feel bad about the wrong thing when she was actually just jealous that he had been paying attention to the blonde and not her. Once more, Charles tended to be oblivious to the things around him.

"Well, sorry to interrupt a sappy moment with a crude fact but it's starting to rain," Raven interrupted as she walked up to the two. She was right. Rain was slowly beginning to fall down on them, the odd drop landing on Jessica's cheek or forehead. Looking up to the black sky, she squinted against the nearby street light as more rain began to tap down on the ground around them.

"Come on, I doubt that a cold is what any of us need right now," said Charles as he tugged on Jessica's hand to get her moving. He opened his other arm out to Raven, ushering the both of them ahead of him. They jogged the remaining distance to the apartment that they were all sharing near the campus, the rain steadily growing harder until they were all nearly drenched. Raven and Jessica were trying to pry the drenched hair from their faces as Charles took off his coat, his text book having been tucked between the folds to keep it dry.

"I'm freezing," Raven stuttered as she scrambled for the stairs, Charles and Jessica following after her. She had already unlocked the door by the time they arrived at their shared apartment. Jessica quickly stripped off her boots so she wasn't tracking the dirt around the carpets, leaving them by the door as she quickly rushed after the direction that Raven had taken so she could change. Charles remained by the door, knowing that nothing had been sorted out by the conversation that they had had on the street.

Stepping quickly into the room that she and Raven shared, she was immediately enveloped in a wet hug by the blue skinned mutant, her emotions nearly pouring out of her at the contact. Raven ran her hand through Jessica's knotted and wet drown hair as the sorrowful woman let her head fall onto Raven's shoulder in defeat.

"I'm so sorry, hun," She whispered softly, knowing that it wouldn't do any good but there was still reason to try.

"It's not your fault," Jessica mumbled back as she pulled away from the embrace, smiling sadly, "We both need to get changed, come on," She encouraged, nudging Raven in the direction of her dresser while she turned toward her own. They had left a small puddle on the floor inside their doorway, part of the carpet left wet.

Hanging their wet clothing over the bathtub of the connecting bathroom, they both pulled on their bath robes over top of their nightgowns before heading out into the main room, arms linked and heads resting on one another. Jessica was tracing the raised designs on the back of Raven's hands, the other girl smiling at the soft feel.

"I still can't believe that you had to serve the Bell's, they're so rude!" Raven said in mock outrage as the two wandered toward the kitchen, Jessica smiling and shaking her head.

"They're not so bad when you're really careful about everything that you do. Just remember what they hate and make sure that you don't do it for your own safety," Jessica laughed back, beginning to swing her and Raven's clasping hands forward and backward. They rounded the corner to the kitchen a moment later, both unsurprised to see that Charles was heating the kettle for tea.

"I remembered to buy you your mint tea," Charles said as he lifted up the box to show Jessica, the picture of the mint leaves on the front of the glossy package, "And cinnamon for you." Raven's cinnamon tea had a red hue to the box, but the fragrance of the spice was filling the kitchen quickly.

"Thanks," Jessica said with a smile as she slipped out of Raven's grip and accepted the box that Charles held out for her. She knew that she couldn't stay angry and hurt at Charles about something that he didn't fully understand so she kissed him softly on the cheek to show that he was forgiven. He smiled as she pulled away, clearly understanding her meaning and let his relief show.

"Hey, Jess, you got something in the mail," Raven commented behind them. She was rooting through the envelopes that Charles had picked up earlier that evening. "It's from oxford," She added quietly, holding up the large, folded package for her best friend to see.

"Doesn't something that thick mean it's an acceptance?" Jessica almost squeaked from her place in the kitchen, looking over to Charles desperately. He smiled back at her and motioned silently for her to open the package, taking the box of tea from her hands before she dropped it. She took the package from Raven, who was smiling broadly and seemed to almost bounce on her feet in excitement.

Using her nail, Jessica carefully tore the end of the envelope open and pulled the sides apart to glance inside, the letter from the school sitting on the very top of several other papers and booklets. Taking a calming breath, which did absolutely nothing to stop the trembling of her hands; she carefully slipped the letter from the package.

_Dear Miss. Sharp,_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted into the Oxford University of London England,-_

"I was accepted!" She yelled joyously, throwing her hands up in the air, still holding the paper and envelope. Raven screamed along with her and rushed up to hug her, the two still bouncing on their feet in celebration.

"Here, let me take these before you lose something," Raven said as she took the envelope and letter from the brunette, who was still trembling and smiling in excitement and happiness. Charles was there was soon as the contents were gone, letting Jessica take him into a hug as well. The smell of his cologne flooded her senses and helped to calm her erratic heartbeat and trembling form. This was a rare moment, when she would hold onto him without having to make up an excuse. She was able to drift off for a moment to wonder what it would be like if he was holding her while they were more than just best friends.

"Congratulations," He whispered into her ear, his arms wrapped tightly around her shoulders to hold her to his chest. "I'm so proud of you."

* * *

><p><strong>Oh, the drama. It kind of strange to write all of this drama since I've never had to live through sometime like this. Good thing i read a lot of books, that's all the experience I would want. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, please review and let me know your thoughts!<strong>


	7. Just That Moment

**Illuminated**

**Just That Moment**

_**~Three Years Later~**_

Jessica woke with a jolt when she felt a strange stirring of lust and want ebbing through her. She groggily looked around the small area that surrounded her on the plane. Charles sat across from her with a book in his hands, completely enthralled in its contents. He had one of his fingers curled over his lips with a frown on his face as he read through the texts. Another strange ebb of lust sparked and she realized that it was not her own. Looking over to the blond beside her, she noticed that Raven was looking a couple of seat ahead of them. Jessica leaned toward Raven to see where she was looking, seeing that she was eye flirting with an attractive dark haired male a couple of seats ahead, a newspaper in his hand.

_You've got to be kidding me,_ she thought in irritation. Leaning back into her seat, she snatched up her pillow that she had been using and swung it over to smack Raven in the face. The teenage looking mutant started with a small yelp, snatching at the pillow in her face.

Charles looked up at the commotion, seeing the irritation on Jessica's face as she smacked Raven with the plane pillow again. Raising an eyebrow at the two women, he then noticed that red blush of humiliation on Raven's face as she glared at the psychology major beside her. Her dark brown eyes looked ready to kill and he became slightly worried about what had just transpired before him while he was reading.

"If you're going to have eye sex than keep your damn hormones to yourself," Jessica grumbled as she turned toward the window of the plane, looking out at the grey rainclouds that surrounded them. Raven's blush only darkened, spreading from her cheeks to her ears and neck as well. Charles cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Well, I can't help that you're an empath!" She snapped in a whisper, Jessica turned to look at her with a glare that matched the blondes.

"Neither can I!"

"Stop using that excuse-"

"It's not an excuse-"

"Ladies, please," Charles interrupted, causing them both to look over to him suddenly. Jessica's vibrant green eyes were a contrast to Raven's unnatural dark ones but they both held irritation for the person beside them. "There are people around. Jessica, why don't you come sit over here that so you don't accidentally read Raven again?" Charles proposed calmly.

"There, go sit with Charles," Raven ordered, pushing as Jessica. The brunet sputtered as she was pushed from her seat and guided around Raven's legs until she was sitting across from her instead of beside her. Charles held out a book that he had brought with him, one of the many ones that they had read together, with a small smile. She sighed quietly as she accepted the book in her hands and leaned back in her seat.

Raven smiled to herself as she watched Jessica lean her elbow on the same armrest that Charles was using between them, ending with her pressing her shoulder against his. He didn't seem bothered by the action and instead shifted so that he was leaning against her as well, resuming his reading. She had hoped that they would at least talk, but the physical contact was better than nothing.

Jessica knew that she wouldn't be able to fall back asleep so she allowed herself to become enthralled in the murder mystery that Charles had handed her, soon ending up with her head resting on his shoulder as her arm looped through his. Charles' head rested on her head in turn, both still reading away in their books. It was wearing well into the afternoon and their plane wasn't supposed to land for another hour.

Neither noticed when Raven slipped off to go and speak with the mystery man across the span of seats, leaving the two bookworms to their own. She would be lying if she said that she didn't feel neglected and alone while she was with the two University Students. Charles had continued on to Oxford University as he had wished to while Jessica decided to take a year off of schooling and spend the year with Raven. They both got local jobs at a fancy restaurant as waitresses, only temporary. Charles was kept busy with his first year of University, Jessica was occupied with her studying and work while Raven took the time to let herself explore the work without Charles holding her back as her elder protective brother.

The next semester came faster than anyone expected and Jessica was forced to quit her job when she was finally accepted in Oxford University. She and Charles fell into some classes together, but they were still nearly worlds apart. He was majoring in human genetics while she was majoring in psychology, he had many biology classes while she fell into psychology, sociology and physiology. Raven knew that they both still tried to keep her in the loop of their lives, but she was a waitress as a local restaurant and they were students at a prestigious school. She felt left out no matter what, but she was touched by their attempts and loved them all the more.

Jessica was still trying to catch Charles' attention in subtle ways but the genius was as oblivious as the night in the restaurant. She had never been outwardly obvious about her feelings, but even the people around them caught on and started to give her looks of pity when he showed absolutely no reaction what so ever. She began to treasure their close moments, such as the one they were experiencing on the plane at that moment, like they were precious diamonds.

Sometimes, she openly admitted, she felt like slapping the sense that he needed into him.

When Raven returned to her seat nearly an hour later she smiled at the sight of Jessica's head completely lolled onto Charles' shoulder, the book that she had once been reading still clutched in her hand on crossed legs. Charles didn't seem to think about the woman that was sleeping on his shoulder as he worked on one of his many assignments left over from break. He glanced up when she sat down, raising an eyebrow at her slightly. She glared at him a moment to tell him to stay out of her head, making him chuckle for a moment and return to his work. Only a couple of minutes after Raven had resumed her seat did the stewardesses begin to make their final rounds, asking passengers to pack away their belongings for landing.

Charles placed his book aside and reached over to gently touch Jessica's temple, coaxing her from her sleep mentally. He could feel that she had been having a pleasant dream of some kind, but didn't look in encase it was private. She drearily opened her eyes, looking around herself in confusion for the second time.

"We're going to be landing soon," Raven said from across the table, getting a nod from the tired woman. She moved out of the seat beside Charles for a moment to grab her bag from beside Raven. Charles took his book back from her and placed it in his bag with all of the other notebooks and text books that he had once had scattered around him.

"Did you rest well?" Charles asked after they had their things put away and securing for landing, nothing more for them to do but talk.

"Yes, actually. Time flew by, too."

"I'm sure that Raven would agree," Charles said with a grin, looking over to the blushing blonde. She began to look slightly angry and Charles knew why right away. "It doesn't take a telepath to know that, Raven. Rest assured, I wasn't looking in."

"He's right," Jessica commented, pausing to cover her mouth and yawn, "You're expressions say everything. This is where the term 'read you like a book' comes in handy."

"Oh be quiet, the both of you."

Jessica and Charles chuckled together, getting comfortable in their seats as they felt the plane begin to descend. Jessica made sure one last time that her belt was on tight before she looked out the window on Charles' other side, seeing the clouds quickly disappearing above the plane. She smiled slightly as she watched the buildings appear in the distance.

"I hate landings," Raven mumbled to herself, closing her eyes. Jessica looked over to her sister quickly before she glanced at Charles, sharing a knowing look of pity with him. The plane began to shake slightly as it continued to descend, Jessica's hand clasping overtop of Charles on their shared armrest. The plane jerked violently one last time as it hit the tarmac, before it began to smoothly roll down toward the airport. Jessica pried her hand off of Charles' to join in the applause that filled the plane for a successful flight and landing. Charles copied her and began to clap as well, but Raven was still trying to relax her hands from the armrests.

"Are you alright over there?" Jessica asked, learning forward and tapping Raven's knee.

"I'm alive," She gasped out. Jessica smiled and sat back, watching as they passed another parked plane slowly.

"It's alright now, Raven, we're on the ground and safe," She assured, not looking away from the view out the window. It was strange being back in London, the clouds hanging thick over the city instead of the clear blue sky they had left behind in Westchester. "I have a feeling we're going to need to find your umbrella, Raven."

Charles turned to look out the window, looking at the darkened sky that foretold of a storm. "Maybe it will hold off until we get to the apartment," He said hopefully, smiling over to Jessica. She looked on doubtfully as she felt the plane finally come to a stop outside of the airport entrance off the tarmac. People rose from their seats and began to collect their belongings, the three mutants doing the same. Jessica took one of Charles' bags to lighten his heavy load of books and notebooks. She smiled in thanks as the man across the aisle from them let them depart first, manoeuvring herself through the seats.

Charles placed a hand on her back as she was walking down the steps toward the ground, taking careful steps so she didn't trip. He kept an eye on both her and Raven until they were safely on the ground, feeling the moisture that collected in the air even as they walked toward the entrance.

"I highly doubt we're going to make it to the apartment," Raven said as she hugged her jacket a little bit closer to herself, holding on as much of her body heat as she could against the England chill.

Less than an hour later they had their bags with them, standing and waiting for a car to take them to their apartment outside of the airport. Raven had her hood pulled up on her head already as the car pulled up outside the entrance. Heavy rain pelted down on the black car as the driver stepped out and rushed up to get their bags and load them into the back. Jessica wished that she had remembered to wear the coat with a hood as well, but she was in her spring jacket that was meant more for stile than comfort.

"Of all the days," She muttered to herself, thanking the driver as he took her bag and ran it out to the car. Charles stepped up beside her, lifting his coat up over his head and opening up half to her. She smiled in thanks and stepped underneath his jacket, wrapping an arm around his torso.

"_Ready?_" Charles asked quietly. She nodded in return, ducking closer to his form. His body radiated warmth and she relished in it. Charles began to move and she moved with him, staying close and away from the spray of the rain as they rushed for the car, Raven already sitting in the front passenger seat. She shared a quick grin with Jessica as they rushed past her window, the blond wanting to do a dance in celebration but fought against the urge.

Charles stood and waited as Jessica slipped into the car as quickly as she could, sliding across the seat. He jumped in after her, shedding off his soaked coat. She laughed softly as she leaned away when he shook the material lightly, drops of water flying at her.

"Stop that! Not in the car!"

"It's not even your car," Charles said back, before he fell silent as the driver slipped back into the seat in front of Jessica, closing the door behind him. Charles gave him the address quickly and they were soon pulling away from the crowded street outside of the building. Jessica took Charles' jacket as he prepared to shake it again.

"No," She scolded, causing Raven to snort in amusement from the front seat. The driver just ignored them as he concentrated on getting to their destination. Jessica grinned as Charles pretended to pout and put his coat on the leather seat between them, sitting back in her own and turning to watch the rain as it poured across the window.

As much as she wished that she was still in the sunshine, sitting in the library of the manor with Charles and Raven, she knew that it was time to go back to school and reality. She had kept up with her assignments over the break and was prepared for going back, but she knew that she would be dreaming about the longs days just doing nothing with her two best friends. It was easy to tell that Raven had been happier than on Christmas day to have them all back together and away from school and work for a while.

Jessica looked over to Charles for a moment out of the corner of her eye, a small smile peaking at her lips that she couldn't control. She would miss spending her days with Charles most of all.


	8. Hold It All Back

**Illuminated**

**Hold It All Back**

Jessica watched the rain as it poured down the glass pane of the window in thick streams, a cool air emanating from the glass. She looked down to see a couple of black umbrellas walk passed the building, couples or friends chatting beneath them. She sighed quietly as her head fell back against the wall beside the window, closing her eyes and concentrating on blending the veins in with her skin. Moments later the door opened and Raven threw herself onto the nearest bed in irritation.

"Men are stupid," she grumbled, propping her chin in her hand as she looked over to Jessica. A flash of lightning drew both of their attention before the brunet laughed softly, glancing back to the younger.

"Looks like the weather suits both of our moods," she replied. "Come on, let's go make up a warm drink and you can tell me what has made you hate the opposite sex this time," Jessica said, pushing herself off of the window seat in hers and Raven's room, tugging the azure skinned mutant to her feet as well.

"Only if I get hot cocoa with marshmallows and a lot of syrup on top," she growled out as she was pulled to her feet. Jessica smiled and draped an arm over Raven's shoulders in a silent 'of course' and led the way to the kitchen. Charles had to meet with one of his professors that afternoon so the two women were left to their own on that fine, dreary day.

Raven sat on top of one of the counters as Jessica began preparing hot cocoa for the both of them, letting Raven nibble on some of her favourite sweets to help make her feel a bit better as she waited. Raven had been trying to fill her time with boys for the past couple of months since they had returned to London for Charles' last semester of school, as well as Jessica's second last. She would always think she had found the perfect one, would make up a scenario about someone that was different, say had a skin disease, and they were dropped a minute later by answering the wrong the way.

"He was different! He didn't say anything rude or offending when I asking him about a skin condition and all that, but then he had to go and flirt with other women!" Raven yelled, flinching a moment as she looked around when she realized that they were not at the mansion and that people could actually hear when she yelled something.

"You say they're different every time, hun," Jessica said as she patted one blue knee that wasn't covered completely by Raven's skirt. "When you meet the right guy, he'll already know that you're testing him and he'll assure you with whatever way he knows is best, because he wants to go through the trouble of reassuring you so he can be with you."

"Are you sure he just doesn't want sex?" Raven asked bluntly. Jessica's head fell back as she laughed, turning away from Raven to compose herself.

"I'm afraid I can't assure against that, my dear, but I can always take a peek inside if you wish-"

"No! No telepathy!" She nearly cried, making Jessica jump at the volume of her voice. Raven seemed more stressed out than Jessica had ever seen her and she immediately moved to stand in front of her, her attention undivided.

"Raven, what's wrong?"

Raven's lips twitched as she stopped herself from speaking to think over what she was actually going to say. "Am I ugly?" she asked suddenly, looking directly into the unreal electric green of Jessica's eyes. Jessica was shocked at the words that she heard, but didn't hesitate as she nearly yelled.

"No, Raven," she said with such a forcefulness that Raven almost recoiled back. "You are beautiful, on the inside _and_ the outside. You are unique and special."

"But why does no one else seem to think so?"

"They don't know the real you, Ray. I don't know what it feels like to have to completely change yourself to fit in with society, but the person that is meant for you is the one that can see you, the _real you_, and always love you for it. I once read a quote that's stuck with me for a while, 'Those who mind do not matter, and those who matter do not mind'."

"But I'm blue!"

"And I'm covered in green and blue veins and I could kill someone if I wasn't careful," Jessica countered, letting her façade slip. The veins stood out around her eyes and wrists, giving her an almost demonic look. Raven's blue hand rose up to stroke along one of the veins, feeling the raised potion of her skin because of it. "Even Charles hates this face, Raven."

"He doesn't hate it," Raven whispered back, leaning forward to rest her cheek on Jessica's forehead. "Charles doesn't know what to do sometimes, he's overwhelmed by all of this. He's doing all that he knows to save us from the world that might just try to destroy us in the end."

"I thought I was the one that was supposed to comfort you," Jessica said with a dry laugh. Raven laughed softly with her, the two women leaning against one another with sappy smiles on their faces.

The sound of a key turning in the lock made them quickly move to compose themselves, Jessica moving to the stove to stir the hot chocolate before it burnt. Charles gravitated to the kitchen at the smell of the drink as it boiled on the stove, appearing in the doorway just as Jessica was pouring the coco into three cups.

"You have no idea how badly I need something sweet," Charles said as he moved behind her, resting his chin on her shoulder as he watched her pour the last of her chocolate drink into the black mug that had been deemed Charles' when they moved in. She laughed softly and took hold of the top of the mug so as not to burn her hands on the hot side, holding it up for him to take a hold of the handle.

"Right on time." She smiled, getting a quick kiss on her temple as he took the drink and turned to greet Raven with a hug. "How did the meeting go?" she called out to him as he disappeared into the living room of the apartment.

"Long," he called back. Raven watched her sister's face as she moving about cleaning up the mess that had accumulated in the kitchen, her cheeks a slight rosy colour because of the kiss. But there was also a sadness to her. The brunet noticed the looks that she was receiving and smiled reassuringly, retrieving her mug and leading Raven out of the kitchen.

"There's nothing wrong, though, right?" she asked, sitting down on the only free chair while Raven sat on the other end of the couch.

"No, he just wanted to talk to me about one of my papers on human mutation," Charles explained, watching as Jessica curled herself up in the small arm chair. She looked comfortable even though she was pretty much folded in like a toy in a box, both of her hands holding the hot mug of coco to keep her hands warm.

"Did he question your theories again?"

"Of course, what professor hasn't?" Charles asked as he looked at her with a curious stare. Jessica laughed softly, shaking her head. It was true, most of Charles' professors found him brilliant, but they also questioned him on a daily basis. Raven and Jessica had heard their fair share of his work, listening to him read it through aloud and they both thought that it was wonderfully written, but not many people in the school were as adamant about it. The doubted him and his research.

"I'm proud of you," Jessica said suddenly, making him look back to her again, curious. "You listen to the ridicule of what people think but you never give up on it."

"I know that it's real, we're all proof of that, but I just need a way to show the other people of the world," Charles said as he leaned back against the overstuffed couch, one elbow on the armrest to his right.

"If there's ever a person that can, it's you," Raven assured, nudging him in the thigh with her bare blue foot. Charles nudged her foot back, making her draw away at the ticklish feeling, grinning to herself as she tried not to laugh. Jessica smiled to herself, taking a sip from the still hot drink.

"What about you two, what have you been doing while I was away?" Charles finally asked, looking between the two, smiling to them. They smiled to each other, holding a secret between them that was almost too tempting to look in on.

"Girl time," they finally both replied, causing him to roll his eyes. Jessica chuckled to herself, holding her hot chocolate closer to herself to try and take its warmth. The apartment held the chill of London in it, making all three attempt at warming themselves with the hot cocoa that they were all holding. Raven continued to watch as Jessica glanced back at Charles, who had his head rested back on the couch.

"Hey, Jess," Raven asked suddenly, making the brunet look at her. Charles also seemed to pay more attention, but didn't show it openly. "You have a late class tomorrow, right?"

"Oh, right! I almost forgot about that," Jess said, straightening herself in her seat.

"What time do you think you'll be back?"

"I have no idea," she admitted, looking to the side in thought. "It depends on how fast we're able to get through the rest of the class." Raven looked crestfallen at the news that she wasn't going to be able to spend time with her sister the next day, but nodded her head in understanding.

"Sorry, Ray, I'll try to get here as soon as I can, but I can't make any promises," Jessica said softly, seeing Raven nod again. Charles peeked over to Raven to see that she did look upset from the news. He looked over to Jessica, noticing the concentrated look on her face. She was using her empathic gift to make Raven feel better, he could tell that already.

"_You know that she doesn't like it when you do that," _Charles said to her telepathically, making her concentration break and look over to him instead. She looked ashamed at what she had done, nodding her head to him. _"I know that you mean well, Jessica, but Raven is a grown woman. She doesn't need you to protect her anymore."_

"_I know, you could call it a bad habit,"_ Jessica replied back, looking into his eyes. Charles couldn't help but to be struck by the beauty of her bright green eyes. He always marvelled on the intense colour, even years of living with her and Raven they still surprised him in different ways. He suddenly caught the sight of the faint veins beginning to appear beneath the skin, knowing that she was beginning to use her mutation too much.

"Stop having mental conversations, I never know whether or not you're talking about me," Raven suddenly interrupted, causing them both to look over to her, eye contact breaking. She looked between them, an eyebrow raised. Clearly she was waiting for her someone to assure her that she had not been the topic of conversation.

"Raven, I need your help with preventing Jessica from using her mutation. It's starting to take a toll on her," Charles said suddenly, causing Raven to look over to look at Jessica, who threw her head back in exasperation, hiding her eyes from them.

"Jessica!"

"Charles, you're a butt," Jessica said in irritation. Charles got up from where he was resting on the couch, placing his hot cocoa on the table before him and Raven. He lifted Jessica's head to look at him, seeing that she wasn't hiding the marks any more. She refused to look into his eyes this time, but he could already tell that her mind was drawing away from his.

"Look at me, Jessica," Charles said softly, waiting for a moment as she hesitated before her eyes finally flicked back to his. He nearly pulled back by the sight of near tears in her eyes, the moisture collecting at the rim of her bottom eyelid. Raven fell completely silent when she saw the look in her sister's eyes, the look that was meant only for Charles. She looked torn. Charles was worried about her, but not in the way that she was hoping. He was only worried about her in a way of her losing control.

**I'm sorry that I haven't updated in a while! I know that you all must be irritated that it took this long, and I really did try to get it out sooner than this but I've been caught up with other stories and school. I can't wait for the end of the semester! Please review, you're comments are always wonderful to read!**


	9. Wash Away The Lies

**Illuminated**

**Wash Away The Lies**

Jessica could already feel like she was falling asleep as she collected her things from her work desk, smiling tiredly to the man that was going to meet with the teacher for evaluation after her. He smiled back, nervousness rolling off of him in waves. When he turned his back to her Jessica concentrated hard on his nervousness and carefully washed most of it away, allowing him to relax a bit before he went in to meet with the teacher.

"Goodnight, Jess!" one of the other guys called over to her, making her look up from the folder that held all of her notes. She smiled hesitantly to him, waving back calmly before she slipped her folder into the messenger bag that she had brought with her.

"Goodnight, Jason," she said back calmly, nodding to him one last time before she departed.

There were barely any people left in the large auditorium, most having already had their evaluation and quickly heading out to try and beat the storm that had been warned of that morning. Jessica opened the doors to the large room and stepped into the main hall, adjusting her bag and pulling the hood of her coat over the strap encase she needed it.

"Wait, Jessica," a voice said as it approached behind her. She felt like rolling her eyes but stopped herself, instead stopping in her tracks to allow Jason to catch up. "I've already finished with my evaluation, I could walk you home if you'd like."

Jason had been in Jessica's class since the beginning of the semester, sitting with her in the first week before she abruptly moved aside when he refused to stop talking to her during the lessons. He never quite took the hint that she didn't want to talk to him no matter how badly she tried to get it across to him.

"That's alright, I'm not far from here," Jessica assured, beginning to walk again. Turning a sharp right to head toward the outside the doors, she heard him easily keep pace with her.

"It's dark out, I would feel bad having you walk home on your own," he quickly answered, not wavering once. Jessica just wished that she didn't need to worry about this right now, she was still stressing over her upcoming exam, since she refused to look into the teacher's mind after her evaluation, and she was trying to keep herself in control and not let her mutation show in the open.

"I've walked home in the dark before, Jason, I'll be fine."

"I'm sorry, Jessica, but I can't-"

"Go home, Jason, and don't offer to help me again," Jessica commanded, placing her middle and ring finger to her temple like she had a headache. Jason immediately went silent and turned to head in the opposite direction. Jessica stopped to watch him go, blinking back the rising headache that was building up against her temples. She really needed to get home.

Walking quickly to the other door that led out to the side of the building that was closest to her street, she felt like kicking herself for forgetting her umbrella that morning. She had woken up late and practically flew out the door in order to get to her first class on time. Charles had already left and Raven was still sleeping like a log since she didn't have work for another couple of hours.

Rain dropped from the sky like nothing she had seen in London before. The streets were filled with huge rivers of water, the rain falling almost too fast for the drains to whisk it away. One could barely see in front of themselves from the amount of water that was falling down before them and Jessica was less than pleased to have to walk through it.

Pulling her hood up over her head, she took one last look back down the cool dry hallway before darting out into the rain. She was glad that her bag had a waterproof lining on the inside that would protect her work from getting damaged, but she still needed to hurry none the less. There was no one else out in the dark streets of London so late at night, instead, they were all tucked away inside their warm, dry homes, either asleep or with loved ones.

Leaping over a puddle to try and keep her feet at least a bit dry, she had to raise a hand up to hold onto her hood when it nearly blew off her head. The rain still hit her face irritatingly, stinging her eyes and skin. She took a quick look around her before darting across the street, passing the restaurant that she had once worked at with Raven, and manoeuvring around another grouping of puddles.

The rain was seeping through her coat quickly, hitting and chilling her skin. She shivered harshly against the icy feeling of the rain hitting her face, her hood having finally fallen back enough times that she just gave up with it. The darned thing wasn't keeping her dry anyway. She rushed down the last street to the apartment that she shared with her two childhood friends, thanking any God or person that could hear her when she finally saw her complex come into view. Rushing up into the doors, she took a moment to try and shake off at least some of the water before she headed toward the stairs. She got some looks from the other residents that were out of their rooms, but didn't comment.

She pulled her messenger bag off her shoulder and retrieved her key from the front pocket as she walked down the hallway. She couldn't even raise the key to the lock before the door opened, startling her. She must have been a sight to see for Charles, with him dressed comfortably in his pyjama pants and long sleeved grey shirt, freshly showered with his wet hair slicked back. Jessica stood dripping wet, shivering from near hypothermia, her lips were probably blue and her skin pale from lack of warmth. Her head was still killing her and she knew that he could feel it, too.

"Good god," he said simply, his blue eyes wide. She blinked at him numbly before she was suddenly pulled into the apartment, the door closed behind her. Her messenger bag was pulled away from her and her coat was shucked off her shoulders all before she even had a chance to realize that the apartment was comfortably warm. Her feet had only just slipped out of her boots before a large, white towel was wrapped around her, hands rubbing at her shaking shoulders. She could see that Charles had various books spread out on the living room table and knew that he had definitely been waiting for her.

He guided her over to the couch, her wet clothes leaving marks on the carpet as she walked. She was hesitant to sit down, but he had her tightly bundled in towels that helped to keep the couch mostly protected. She was shaking almost uncontrollably, Charles' hands still rubbing her arms to try and warm her up with the friction.

"What happened?"

She knew right away that he was asking about the pain in her head, what had caused it to increase so much. "There's a guy in my class that kept offering to walk me home, I didn't feel comfortable with it and said no, when he continued to persist I had to use my telepathy to force him to go home," she explained carefully. Her shivers made her stutter and pause in her short story, but Charles was patient. She could feel him mentally checking if she was alright, the soothing caresses of his own psyche relaxing away the pain a bit.

"Come here, let me help," Charles offered, moving closer himself. Jessica tried to push her wet bangs out of her face, but her hands shook so much that she ended up placing them on her cheeks instead to try and steady herself. Charles reached forward for her and brushed the hair from her face, allowing her to see him better and keep the water from her eyes. His hands took her own and held the cold appendages in his warm ones. His skin was like fire against her icy digits and she fought against recoiling.

Releasing her hands only a moment later, he placed his two of his fingertips on each of her temples and closed his eyes, knowing that she would do the same. He looked back to see the story she had told him, as well as the spike of pain in her head after she did so. He went about reversing the affects, helping her mind to relax back to its original levels. She was relaxing mentally and physically as he caressed her mind gently, his hands gentle on her temples. He almost jumped at the feel of her hands suddenly grasping his own, her skin was startlingly cold.

"Jessica," Charles began, opening his eyes to look at her. She still had her eyes closed and her head was bowed down, her hair once more covering some of her face. Water dropped down onto his hands and arms, some of the drops catching the material of his long sleeved shirt.

"I need to tell you something, Charles," she finally said, her voice barely above a whisper. His attention remained completely on her, watching her carefully. Her voice shook with emotion, her hands still holding his gently.

"What's wrong?" He could openly admit that he was worried about what had her so serious all of a sudden.

"I'm tired of trying to hide it away, blocking everything out," she started, shaking her head. "It's too much." She went silent for a moment, looking down to where she held his hands in her lap, her pale fingers wrapped around his own. When she looked up again, there were no tears in her eyes like the day before, she had a somewhat serene expression on her face instead. Charles wished that he could tell what she was thinking, but he held back to keep his promise about staying out of her mind when she didn't want him there.

He watched her green eyes carefully, before his attention shifted when she smiled, drawing his sight down to where her pale lips drew up at the corners. One of her hands released his own and lifted to his cheek, her slowly warming skin gently stroking along his cheekbone for a moment before she leaned forward fluidly and pressed those smiling lips to his immobile ones.

Charles felt his heart speed up in his chest and his stomach twist into knots as soon as her lips met his. He felt the barriers around her mind disappear instantly, opening her mind to him for the first time in so many years. He couldn't stop himself from entering into her mind once more, this time with so many more doors presented to him. All else seemed forgotten as he was showed so many different memories that had been locked away, both from before and after they had met.

This was what she meant. She had been blocking and barricading her mind to the point that her psyche was suffering from it. Whenever she used any of her other abilities they added negative affects to the ability that was already in constant use. It was much like Raven's mutation; her concentration was never fully on one thing so long as she had to hide behind a disguise.

Jessica's emotions were more raw than he had ever experienced, but for the first time he wasn't feeling her negative emotions. He had only ever really felt her true emotions when he had to enter her mind to calm her down about something, not when she presented him with the invitation willingly. Love and affection wrapped around him like a comfort blanket, so strange from the usual jagged anger or pain that he assisted in subduing.

The only reason that she had been building barriers around her mind was to hide from _him. _All because she feared rejection, she had been putting herself through even worse physical pain.

Pulled back to reality when her chilled skin suddenly disappeared, Charles opened his eyes to Jessica's nervous green ones. Her smile had melted away into an anxious frown that almost made him feel guilty about not responding to her. He had been so wrapped up inside her mind that he had completely blanked on the fact that she had been kissing him. It had only been for but a few seconds, but it felt like the entire world had suddenly opened up to Charles. So many things that had left him confused in the past were clear and he wished that he could go back and change numerous situations.

He thought back to when Jessica had still worked at the restaurant and he had been flirting with the blonde, to the times that she seemed crestfallen when he called her a dear _friend_, even as far back as high school when she had looked pained to see him dancing with another girl at prom. He felt her sorrow and knew why she had built up the wall around her mind. She had been hoping, initially, that it would protect her from the pain. But it only ended up blocking him out and creating more.

Jessica let out a started gasp when Charles suddenly pulled her into his arms, completely ignoring the fact that her drenched clothing was beginning to soak his night shirt. Her hair was cold against his cheek and moist between his fingers, keeping him grappled to reality as he continued to sift through both of their thoughts. Jessica's hands took a harsh hold of the back of his shirt, not even daring to let go.

"_I am so, so terribly _sorry_, Jessica,"_ Charles whispered into her mind, holding her ever closer when he felt her tremble. And, God, was he sorry. Never in his life had he felt as ashamed of his actions, of his complete lack of brains, as he did in that single moment.

"_I love you, Charles," _Her own telepathy whispered back to him, more clear than he had ever heard before. _"I should have told you ages ago, but I was afraid."_ Charles' hands gripped at her hair and shirt gently, the whispered words striking at his heart so strongly, but in no way painfully.

"Never fear me, Jessica, or fear admitting to emotions," he mumbled into her hair, feeling her nod into his shoulder. Charles gently drew her back and away from him, feeling her hands loosen reluctantly on his shirt. Did she still fear that he would reject her? His released her hair and lowered his hand to her slender throat. She looked into his eyes, the veins that had appeared around hers not his first priority for once.

He didn't hesitate, didn't second guess and didn't regret as he pulled her up to him, initiating their second kiss that evening. Her hands moved up to frame his face, the happiness swelling inside of her until Charles couldn't help but to smile into the kiss. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders to hold her close, wanting nothing more than to have her near and to warm her still shivering body. No words were wanted, no reassurances were needed. They were finally at a complete understanding with one another.

**I wasn't sure if this was how I wanted to write this chapter, I changed it so many times I was starting to get angry at myself! But, I do feel that this is a good way to do things and I'm glad that I did it. So, I hope that you all enjoy it and I also hope that it was worth the long wait that came with it. Sorry about that, by the way!**


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